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BELLSOUTH CLASSIC

April 1, 2004

Roger Tambellini

DULUTH, GEORGIA

TODD BUDNICK: We welcome Roger Tambellini to the BellSouth media center after his 7 under 65. Congratulations on that today.

Your low round of your career out here on TOUR, of course, this is your seventh event of your rookie season. Let's talk about your first few events out here on the Tour. How do you feel, how are things going for you and what's the Tour been like for you?

ROGER TAMBELLINI: Well, I played the Nationwide Tour the last couple of years. So it's been a little bit of an adjustment, but pretty smooth. My first event out, second event out, definitely felt different but starting to feel more comfortable.

It's really a credit to the Nationwide Tour, I think, to get players on this tour and make them feel right at home pretty quickly. But it's been a fun journey so far and I look forward to the rest of the year and hopefully a long career out here.

TODD BUDNICK: You've made three out of six cuts with a T 25 best finish. Are you happy with your start on TOUR or would you like to see different results?

ROGER TAMBELLINI: I'm definitely happy. Tied for 25th in San Diego, but felt like I actually had a chance to win. I think I was only a couple shots away from the winning number going into the back nine on Sunday and felt like I didn't play great, but I was still, you know, somewhat in the hunt. I played with Tiger on Saturday and that really got things going, too.

TODD BUDNICK: Let's jump to today. You were playing well up until the back nine, the front nine, your back and all of the sudden eagle, birdie, birdie, three of your last four holes. Let's just talk a little about today.

ROGER TAMBELLINI: Yeah, I was just playing solid golf, keeping it in play and hitting some adequate shots, making a couple of putts. You know, I made that holed out of the front left bunker, I guess, on what was it, 6 or something, for eagle. It was kind of a shock, actually. I could not see the hole. You could only see about half the pin. I heard it hit the pin and everybody was cheering and I was fine.

Then I felt really comfortable after that. My swing was on track. Hit some good shots coming in and holed a couple of nice putts.

Q. Pretty unlikely day for your low found of the year. You couldn't have tougher conditions. How do you explain that?

ROGER TAMBELLINI: You know, it's almost like a round like this on days like this, you don't pick them; they kind of pick you. It's not something that I would have ever dreamed of doing this morning waking up freezing to your bones, your swing doesn't feel like it's on track. My putting stroke didn't feel great. But yet, if you just take it shot by shot, and just try and hit the fairways somehow, skank it up there in the fairway, skank it up there on the green, you know, you eventually your swing, or eventually my swing today got to feeling good.

So it did play tough out there and I'm proud of the way I played.

Q. Normal weather for the Bay Area; isn't that there you're from?

ROGER TAMBELLINI: We just moved to Scottsdale. So this is definitely not a normal weather day. It never really gets this cold in the Bay Area. This morning, it gets it will go into the high 40s, low 50s and it's consistently cool but never gets this cold. Yeah, it prepared me I guess a little bit.

Q. Where did you play most of your golf growing up?

ROGER TAMBELLINI: I lived in San Francisco for a year and a half and I played out at Lake Merced. I grew up in a small town called San Luis Obispo, central coast of California.

Q. Didn't Loren Roberts grew up there, too?

ROGER TAMBELLINI: Exactly.

Q. How does it compare to that 60 you shot on the Hooters Tour?

ROGER TAMBELLINI: It doesn't, really. The Hooters Tour round, the course was the easiest course you've ever seen. You know, it was a great round. If was a fun round. But it's just, you know totally different golf courses, totally different environment. I don't know.

Q. It's firming up, I assume with the wind, playing like they want it to play here. Again , that's not exactly optimum scoring conditions. How did you handle the shaved areas and that stuff?

ROGER TAMBELLINI: This morning wasn't really that hard. You could spin some shots, definitely. But I look forward to it being hard tomorrow and on the weekend.

But, yeah, you could pretty much fly the ball right at pin and not have to worry about it going over. You're more worried about it spin back too much this morning.

Q. With the reshuffle and all that, where do you stand, and just talk about the pressure to play well when you do get a chance to play on a week like this?

ROGER TAMBELLINI: Going into this week I think in the reshuffle I was 21st I went from 41st to 21st. And going into this week, I think the tentative reshuffle, my tentative reshuffle number was 18. MCI I think will be close, but then I'll get in the next four I'm pretty sure. But I think I'll probably get into MCI, it sounds like. Augusta might be a little tough.

Q. It will be a busy stretch for you; you'll play a lot now.

ROGER TAMBELLINI: Yeah, actually the last couple of years, this is about the time the schedule has started. I'd say I'm prepared, used to it.

Q. Talk about your par on 9, just did you miss the green?

ROGER TAMBELLINI: Yeah, just by a little bit. I still was able to putt. But, you know, I was a little bit nervous. Hit a 3 wood off the tee because it was downwind and I think it was only 318 through the fairway. I've been hitting my driver pretty solidly. Hit an 8 iron just off the green short right which is basically where I wanted to hit it and made a good 2 putt from just off the green. Luckily I got it within, you know, a foot. So I didn't have to grind over the next one too much.

Q. Your win last year, that was the Michelle Wie event; was it a little bit of a struggle for attention early that week there?

ROGER TAMBELLINI: Yeah, it was, it's amazing. I've never seen crowds like that in a Nationwide event. There were thousands of people out there watching her. I knew very little about her until that week.

Yeah, it was great. I mean, she really drew the crowd so that was fun. It was a fun week to win.

Q. At the end, you had the stage to yourself there, I guess?

ROGER TAMBELLINI: Yeah, luckily I clipped her by a couple. But she actually clipped me by a shot I think at the Hawaii tournament. So I've got nothing on her. (Laughter.)

TODD BUDNICK: Let's go through your card. You started on the back side with a bogey on 12.

ROGER TAMBELLINI: Yeah, I missed a 20 footer for par on 12. Hit it over the green long and didn't get it up and down.

14, I hit a good drive and a 6 iron to about four feet and made a good putt.

17, I hit a 3 wood off the tee and a wedge to about 20 feet and made it.

Then 18, second shot there is pretty intimidating. I was thrilled to get it on the green. I hit a 3 wood off the tee and a 3 iron right in the middle of the green and almost made the eagle putt, just lipped out, probably 25 feet, almost 30 feet.

4, I hit it in the right bunkers and then had a wedge out. Then I had, I think, 196 to the hole and I pulled a 3 iron right at the pin. It was a bad shot. I came over and I was trying to play out right of the hole and ended up, you know, with a 20 footer and holed that.

Then I actually made a really good par on the next hole that. Really kept my round going. Hit it in the right bunkers. That was a key hole, really. Hit it in the right bunkers and wedged it out short of the water and hit a 52 yard, 60 degree to about five feet and made the putt.

Then hit a good drive on the next hole and 3 wood in the left bunker and holed my bunker shot. That was probably 15 yards.

7, I hit a great drive right down the middle with a sand wedge to about a foot and a half.

8, 5 iron to about 25 feet. And made the putt.

Q. Inaudible?

ROGER TAMBELLINI: Definitely put it back in my stance and tried to hit a little bit lower.

Q. But you're still getting enough roll that way, it was still bounding pretty well?

ROGER TAMBELLINI: Yeah, especially with my driver. I was hitting my driver pretty far today I think. I put my driver back in my stance a little bit and hit it pretty good. Didn't rise at all.

TODD BUDNICK: Thank you, Roger.

End of FastScripts.

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